Dusten Brown

Native American organizations are asking the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the treatment of American Indian and Alaska Native children in the private adoption and public child welfare systems.

At a meeting in Tulsa on Tuesday, the group honored Dusten Brown, a member of the Cherokee Nation who is the father of 4-year-old Veronica. Brown was also recognized for his service with the Oklahoma National Guard.

Last week, Brown announced he was dropping all custody claims and was working with the South Carolina couple who adopted Veronica on ways he could be involved in her life.

The biological father of a Cherokee girl adopted by a South Carolina couple has dropped his custody claims.

Dusten Brown and a Cherokee Nation assistant attorney general said Thursday proceedings over 4-year-old Veronica have been dropped in the Oklahoma and Cherokee court systems. Brown and the attorney asked that Matt and Melanie Capobianco of Charleston, S.C., drop a contempt complaint against Brown.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is dropping her request to extradite the biological father of a Cherokee girl who was at the center of a bitter custody dispute. He could still face a charge of custodial interference.

Dusten Brown had been scheduled to appear Thursday in an Oklahoma county court to face extradition to South Carolina. Brown was charged in August with custodial interference for failing to hand over 4-year-old Veronica to her adoptive parents, Matt and Melanie Capobianco of James Island, S.C.

Oklahoma’s governor is looking for ways to keep the father of a Cherokee girl from facing charges in South Carolina.

Dusten Brown, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, faces felony charges related to his fight to keep custody of his daughter, Veronica. This week, he turned her over to Matt and Melanie Capobianco, Veronica’s adoptive parents.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court says it's declining to take jurisdiction over the adoption dispute involving a Cherokee girl and has dissolved a stay that was keeping the girl with her father in Oklahoma.

It wasn't immediately clear whether young Veronica would remain in the Cherokee Nation. The tribal court has found that Matt and Melanie Capobianco of South Carolina have no valid claim to the 4-year-old. The girl's father, Dusten Brown, claims federal law favors his keeping custody of the child, but the U.S. Supreme Court has said the Indian Child Welfare Act does not apply to the case.

An Oklahoma judge has awarded custody of a four-month old Native American girl to the Absentee Shawnee Tribe following a South Carolina couple's attempt to adopt the infant.

Baby Desaray was born in May in Oklahoma. A couple in South Carolina who sought to adopt her returned with her to their home. But the infant's biological father is seeking custody. Because Desaray's biological mother is a tribal member, the Absentee Shawnee Tribe has stepped in and the tribe was awarded custody this week.

The father of a Cherokee girl at the center of a custody dispute has surrendered to Oklahoma authorities amid claims he's interfering with parental rights granted to a South Carolina couple.

A secretary for Sequoyah County Judge Jeff Payton said Dusten Brown surrendered Thursday. Gov. Mary Fallin signed an extradition warrant Wednesday, saying Brown wasn't negotiating in good faith with a Charleston, S.C., couple granted custody of the girl in July.

The complicated and emotional case of a Native American girl who was adopted by a couple in South Carolina but has been living for more than 18 months with her biological father in Oklahoma has taken another turn.

The father of a Cherokee girl at the center of an adoption dispute has arrived at an Oklahoma courthouse, apparently without the girl.

Matt and Melanie Capobianco of South Carolina obtained a court order asking Dusten Brown to bring 3-year-old Veronica to the Cherokee County Courthouse Friday morning. A South Carolina court approved their adoption of the child, but a Cherokee Nation court has granted custody to Brown and his family.

Brown entered the courthouse without the child. Police and lawyers flanked them, while Brown supporters held up signs outside the building.